The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1887-02-26

Interesting Interview with Gen
Simon Cameron.

At the age of 89 Simon Cameron
is still hale and hearty, and ha.
gone to the Bermudas on a pleasure
trip, intending to return in April
Just as he was setting out from
New York he had a talk with rep.
resentative of the Boston Herald
81 am going to the Bermudas," he
said, for pleasure as much as fol
health. The only discomfort of any
kind / have is a rheumatic trouble,
which strikes me occasionally in
the back, and is the result of a fall
l had some four years since.
thought perhaps trip to a warmer
climate would free me from this,
my only ailment. This is the sole
reason for my journey, except a
desire to see the tropics and enjoy
a change from my quiet life in
Pennsylvania and attention to my
business affairs.
THE OLD GENERALS APPEARANCE
And manner spoke for his good
physical condition, and the two
hours l spent with him fully dem
onstrated the brightness of his in
tellect, and the wonderful hold he
has, not only upon public matters,
but on all worldly affairs with which
he deals. "You were so long i'm
public life, general" l suggested,
that l suppose you now look back
upon it as a sort of Vanity Fair, of
which you were only a part"
"Not at all" replied the veteran.
| am fond of public life. / take as
much interest in the lights and
shades to-day as | ever did. Al
though have given up all active
participation in political affairs, yet
| have not lost particle of my in
terest in public concerns and watch
the drift of political life with as
much interest as ever. By the way,
We are in the midst of a negative
era in our national progress that is
hardly interesting. These are the
days when there are no great ques-
tions to call out the best energies
of the men who deal with our pub
lie affairs. All nations pass through
sentimental, tragic and negative
times. Our sentimental era came
with the struggle against slavery,
which brought the tragic in the
shape of war; these two combined
brought out the best power of lead
ing men, and they followed upon
each other that each aided in the
development of thought upon our
national necessities. The settle
ment of war questions after peace
was declared kept strong men to
the front, or gave ordinary men an
opportunity to show to the best ad-
but now there are no great
questions before the country, and
there is entirely too much disposi-
ton to talk of a lack of brains
and assertive power among public
men. 1t is the fashion of old men,
especially to talk of the good old
days. No day in our national his
tory was ever brighter or broader
than the present, and if an emer-
gency called for a display of intel
lectual and physical power, we are,
perhaps, as we'll prepared to-day as
ever in our history"
"You have had many years ex
periencc in public life-how long
Is it?"
"For seventy years l have watched
he shifting tides of our national
life, for / began early. / was a
printer on the Congressional Globe
With Gales and Seaton in 1920 and
vent Immediately from their en-
Dloy to edit the leading democratic
at Harrisburg. | had
.wo years before that edited the
Democrat. This was
when James Monroe was president.
In looking back over these inter
rening years, l find that have
seen, and often times been, part |
IF the success and defeats of every
political party that has lived in
his country to any purpose. ! re-
member the contest between the
and the democrats, and
,arly took my position with the
lemocr attic party, because it was
hen liberal in it's views, broad in
is craftsmanship, and championed
he
CAUSE OF THE COMMON PEOPLE.
The aristocratic federal party was
succeeded by the wings, who were
'ully as conservative and almost as
nigh in tone. They succeeded once
,r twice only by accident, as that
party never possessed the elements
If party favor. The democratic
party lived longer on successful
than any other, for
he reason that it stood closest to
he people. But during the first
combat with slavery 1t
lrifted into the championship of
hat course of our national life, and
shus drifted away from the general
sentiment, until it was DESTROYED
n the vortex of civil strife. The
party was born Of the